Two weeks ago, President Trump terminated the United States participation in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, more commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal.

President Trump withdrew from the deal for a simple reason: it failed to guarantee the safety of the American people from the risk created by the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

No more. No more wealth creation for Iranian kleptocrats. No more acceptance of missiles landing in Riyadh and in the Golan Heights. No more cost-free expansions of Iranian power. No more.

The JCPOA put the world at risk because of its fatal flaws.

And they’re worth recounting at some length today, if only for the purpose of ensuring that subsequent arrangements do not repeat them.

For example, the weak sunset provisions of the JCPOA merely delayed the inevitable nuclear weapons capability of the Iranian regime.

After the countdown clock ran out on the deal’s sunset provisions, Iran would be free for a quick sprint to the bomb, setting off a potentially catastrophic arms race in the region. Indeed, the very brevity of the delay in the Iranian nuclear program itself incentivized Middle Eastern proliferation.

Moreover, as we have seen from Israel’s recent remarkable intelligence operation, Iran has lied for years about having had a nuclear weapons program. Iran entered into the JCPOA in bad faith. It is worth noting that even today, the regime continues to lie.

Just last month, Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif told a Sunday morning news show, “We never wanted to produce a bomb.”

This claim – this claim would be laughable if not for the willful deception behind it. Not only did the AMAD Program exist; the Iranians took great care – though, as we can see now, not enough care – to protect, hide, and preserve the work of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Mahabadi and his gang of nuclear scientists.

The JCPOA had additional shortcomings as well.

The mechanisms for inspecting and verifying Iran’s compliance with the deal were simply not strong enough.

The deal did nothing to address Iran’s continuing development of ballistic and cruise missiles, which could deliver nuclear warheads.

The JCPOA permitted the Iranian regime to use the money from the JCPOA to boost the economic fortunes of a struggling people, but the regime’s leaders refused to do so.

Instead, the government spent its newfound treasure fueling proxy wars across the Middle East and lining the pockets of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hizballah, Hamas, and the Houthis.

Remember: Iran advanced its march across the Middle East during the JCPOA. Qasem Soleimani has been playing with house money that has become blood money. Wealth created by the West has fueled his campaigns.

Strategically, the Obama administration made a bet that the deal would spur Iran to stop its rogue state actions and conform to international norms.

That bet was a loser with massive repercussions for all of the people living in the Middle East.

The idea of the JCPOA as a strategic pillar of stability in the Middle East was captured perfectly by John Kerry when he said, quote, “I know the Middle East that is on fire … is going to be more manageable with this deal,” end of quote.

Query whether the Middle East is more manageable today than it was when they embarked on the JCPOA.